Fans react to the Toronto Maple Leafs loss to the Florida Panthers in NHL Stanley Cup playoff hockey action at a tailgate event outside Scotiabank Arena, in Toronto on May 18.Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press
Fight fire with…
Re “Separate out” (Letters, May 16): So now we have Preston Manning, still with matches in hand, suggesting that the forest fire he’s tried to light can best be contained with Danielle Smith’s referendum backfire strategy.
Here’s hoping that strategy backfires.
Steve Pedretti Toronto
I was pleased to read the sensible comments regarding Alberta separation by Jason Kenney and ATCO CEO Nancy Southern; much less so those of Preston Manning, who attempts a firefighting metaphor to justify Danielle Smith’s words and actions.
But firefighters would never deliberately make it easier for a fire to start in the first place. They would have no hesitation in saying that, after all, their goal is to put it out.
Jamie Syer Mountain View County, Alta.
A letter-writer from Saskatchewan asks if he is an “owner” of Alberta. I say yes, and so is every other Canadian.
Canada financed Alberta’s development and connected it to the rest of the world, importing people and exporting its bountiful resources. All Canadians, through their elected representatives, would have to agree to any change to Alberta’s status as a province within the federation.
Until then, nobody’s going anywhere.
Jeremy Klein Ottawa
Time ticking
Re “Canada Post receives strike notice, workers set to walk out on Friday” (Report on Business, May 20): Here we go again, another strike that seems to ignore the seriousness and causes of the situation Canada Post faces going forward.
Times, technologies and business models change all the time, and neither Canada Post nor the Canadian Union of Postal Workers have dealt with the problem in a timely fashion. I think the reality is that we do not need home delivery, and we probably don’t need deliveries more than twice a week.
Shift and work flexibility are likely required, along with a timeline to either adapt successfully or wind up the business. We cannot afford the current system.
Richard Dean Sidney, B.C.
Familiar faces
Re “Mark Carney’s bulky and performative cabinet” (May 14): What is considered “performative” seems to be the “identity politics” of “reinstituted ministers responsible for women and gender equality, seniors, children and youth.”
As the term “performative” is defined as something “not sincere but intended to impress someone, prove something is true,” might the trade- and commerce-heavy cabinet also demonstrate the current desperate desire to exhibit a new concept of “economy-signalling?”
Chester Fedoruk Toronto
Re “The new math – the Carney math – of the new government" (Report on Business, May 16): The new cabinet is referred to as “bloated” because there are 28 ministers and 10 junior ministers.
Does it matter what we call them? If there weren’t “junior ministers,” would there not have to be “senior associate assistants” or some such?
If Mark Carney had named only 20 ministers, would that be “lean?” Doesn’t the same work still have to get done?
This debate reminds me of the old story about the guy buying a pizza: When the cook asks if he wants it cut into eight pieces, the fellow says, “Oh, I’m not that hungry. Better cut it in four.”
Bob Rafuse Beaconsfield, Que.
Yes, it looks like the old Ford Model T, same as before. But let’s give Canadians an opportunity to open up the hood for themselves: There is a brand new engine inside.
Let newly elected Mark Carney, with experience in crisis management, select the people he feels he needs.
Robert Marcucci Toronto
I recall some years ago visiting the British cabinet war rooms under Whitehall in London.
The war cabinet had five chairs at the table. Just saying.
A.S. Brown Kingston
As predictable as the sunrise: An early elimination of the Leafs from playoff contention, with solemn promises of big changes to come, and the election of another Liberal government – with solemn promises of big changes to come.
Even with a change of “coaches” and the optimistic prospect of renewal, many of us pretend it will be different. But I can see it coming a mile away: the myopic focus on individual stats, or the convening of a comically wonky cabinet.
I am now inured to the idea of such predictable mediocrity deriving from two groups who never seem to manage to equal the sum of their component parts. We might be fooled yet again, but I think the certainty of knowing the ultimate inadequacy of both teams makes the eventual failure oddly reassuring.
Dave McClurg Calgary
Another exit
Re “After another Leafs playoff failure, let The Core Four era end” (Sports, May 20): I am not upset that the Leafs lost Game 7, it’s that I am disappointed at how they played.
Laurie Kochen Toronto
I don’t pretend to be a hockey mastermind, but I have wondered for several years why the Leafs haven’t gotten rid of one or more of the Core Four. In spite of the brilliance of each player separately, their collective radiance hasn’t jelled.
I was around the last time the Leafs won the Stanley Cup in 1967. It was a disappointing moment for a young Habs fan to watch the great George Armstrong hoist the vessel and parade it around the arena.
Things have changed hundreds of times since then, but the definition of failure remains doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. The Leafs should jettison that “wisdom” and trade or buy out a couple of the Core Four.
A move like that would cause the entire bench to give its collective head a hard wake-up shake.
Nancy Marley-Clarke Cochrane, Alta.
My late dad George adored the Buds. Family first, the Leafs a close second.
Growing up in the 1950s, George’s father was an academic type who couldn’t understand the infatuation with the Leafs. So, logically, his father thought it would be good to take him to a game to see for himself it wasn’t anything special.
I’m glad my Dad didn’t see fans throwing jerseys at Game 7. Frustration sure, but that’s just disrespectful to all involved. Shame on them.
Squeezing the sticks, melting under pressure: Yes, but that is a common thing and only the eventual champion can say they overcame these natural tendencies. I believe the Leafs will get there sometime soon, and it will be sweet.
Can’t wait. Love to the Leafs, love to Dad.
Roger Wright Tokyo
With the Leafs eliminated yet again, have they announced the date that ticket prices will be hiked for next season?
Ian Campbell Toronto
Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com